Deal will save some bison near Yellowstone from slaughter

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Montana and federal officials announced a deal Thursday to let some bison migrate through a private ranch bordering Yellowstone National Park, the Associated Press reports. It would allow a small number of the animals to avoid slaughter under a disease control program that has claimed more than 3,000 bison since 2000.

The deal, estimated at $2.8 million, would give the bison access to more than 5,000 acres of federal land outside the park.

Despite criticism from the livestock industry and bison advocates, park officials characterized the deal as breaking an eight-year impasse on one of the National Park Service’s most divisive wildlife issues.

‘Until today, bison were never allowed to use that space,’ said Yellowstone National Park Supt. Suzanne Lewis.

All other bison leaving the park during the winter migration still would be subject to slaughter. Since last fall, a record 1,601 bison have been killed to prevent the spread of the disease brucellosis, which can cause cows to abort their developing calves.

-- Francisco Vara-Orta